


I Hate That Bitter Taste

by wickersnap



Series: We Wrote Our Story [1]
Category: Avengers: Infinity War - Fandom, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies), Thor: Ragnarok - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Family Reunions, Fix-It, Fluff, Happy Ending, I just wanted Thor to be happy tbh, Light Angst, Multi, Not really tbh, Reunions, Short, and i love loki, slight Thorki, slight valkyrie/bruce, slight valkyrie/thor, tag it anyway so no one gets upset
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-22
Updated: 2018-05-22
Packaged: 2019-05-10 05:22:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14730746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wickersnap/pseuds/wickersnap
Summary: As the party continues on into the afternoon, Thor watches his fellow Avengers celebrate their well won victory from his hill, which is actually very comfortable, he thinks.





	I Hate That Bitter Taste

**Author's Note:**

> Just a very short fix/how I would like the Infinity saga to end: nicely, please, Marvel.

When everything is over, when everyone returns, they find themselves on the battleground plains of Wakanda, and everyone is celebrating.

The bodies of what can only be described as the outrider _massacre_ have long since been cleared, and the whole country has come to celebrate the resurrection and victory of the fallen. The other-worlders calling themselves “The Guardians” disappeared some hours ago, but are, presumably, going to return. His fellow Avengers are rejoicing down below him, but Thor had retreated to his perch on this hill a short while ago, and is quite comfortable, he thinks. Many people seem reluctant to go for long without any level of physical contact, which—understandable, he thinks. Earlier he had done the celebratory rounds with Bruce; they had ended up in a small gathering of their friends being hugged and clapped on the shoulder, expressing sympathies and sorrows and congratulations. He had found out that afternoon that the return of the good Captain’s Sergeant friend had fanned the flames of an already straining disagreement, and that several new persons of interest had risen to attention.

From his hill Thor watches Bruce talk quietly with the Lady Natasha, both of whom have the air of great relief and release of long-retained tension. Steve is talking with Lady Okoye, another staggeringly worthy warrior among their ranks. She laughs with them, and is apparently familiar with Barnes, at whose waist Steve’s hand has been firmly planted for most of the day. Stark and the Spider-Boy are talking quite animatedly to the Panther King and Lady Shuri. Sam Wilson and James Rhodes are calling for another toast, pulling everyone’s attention to them, and Thor lifts his drink from where he sits, smiling and nodding to Miss Maximoff when she looks for him.

At some point he notices that the cheers of the gathered nation (and honorary citizens) have been drowned out by a loud rushing of engines and hydraulics in the landing approach of a ship. Everyone looks up to see the Guardians’ Milano landing a little way off, and the volume of the cheering rises again. Thor snatches up his hammer—and however long it will take him to acquaint himself with its estranged weight and balance will be too long—and launches himself over to greet them. He lands before the hatch falls open, and the majority of their friends are still scrambling to catch up.

The first to emerge are Star-Lord and Lady Gamora, who blink out at the gathered crowd and stumble their (undoubtedly exhausted) way down to solid ground. Closely following are the tree and the rabbit and then the kind lady and the frowning man, all of them world-weary with relief. Quill turns and squints up at the sky, wandering absently backwards. A second ship appears to be making its way towards them—one that Thor only sort of recognises, but immediately knows. He glances away for just long enough to see Rocket nod to him and find Bruce is now standing at his side. The next few moments are laced with the torture of turbulent anticipation. He doesn’t know what to expect, nor what to prepare for, _but if the escape transport is intact, then…_

When the ramp lowers, the still-wizard-looking men Thor met on odd occasion stride out and are talking quickly with the people around them. Thor’s people. Alive. Valkyrie comes stumbling to the ground, nearly reminiscent of their first meeting, hand-on-hilt, and sweeps her gaze over the party. She spots them and straightens and drops her sword the few inches back into its scabbard. Thor elects to ignore the tension sliding out of her shoulders and her ever-so-slightly laboured breathing—ever the diplomat, this one. She walks over to them, quickly, yes, but she marches up and stops a few feet short. Thor grins and claps a hand to her shoulder as she looks him up and down, and then to Bruce.

“It’s good to have you back safe,” he starts, but she yanks him into an unexpectedly firm hug before he can get any further. She fumbles an arm out to the side to reel Bruce in, too, who folds loosely. Thor can feel her throat working to not sob against him and thinks that maybe it can finally be over. She pulls away a little roughly, but keeps her hold on the both of them while she composes herself and her most dangerous grin. Thor finds himself a little choked up.

“Glad to see you haven’t managed to off yourselves in my absence.” After a few near-misses on teary reunions, Valkyrie extricates herself, and in her place Peter Quill and Rocket sidle up to him.

“We saved what and who we could from the wreckage,” he sighs. “I get the feeling this isn’t enough, but it’s the most we could find.” Quill sounds not only sympathetic but remorseful and pained and Thor isn’t prepared for all of this today, not really.

“You have done more for me and my people than you could ever know, good friend, and I don’t know where to start to repay you.” He tries to focus on the band of Guardians, but over and over again he finds his eyes straying through the crowds. Eventually, Quill settles on, “then you can just owe us one,” and he’s left to his own devices on the edge of the celebration.

It’s truly something else to watch the people of Asgard mingle with those of Earth, Wakanda, and be welcomed so warmly. They’re refugees, now, seeking asylum, and he has no idea where to go from here. He spots Valkyrie being introduced to Natasha by Bruce, who’s standing to the side wringing his hands, if not too obviously, and looking from one to the other. By the look on her face Thor can’t tell whether she’s offended by Nat or seriously into her, but Clint, hanging around in the background, looks incredibly amused. Scott Lang and Lady Wasp, having thrown themselves into the mix, are now caught in conversation with Stark, Stephen Strange and Captain Danvers. Thor, finding himself alone and restless, has to stop himself from thinking so hard. All the what-ifs and should-haves and wishes and regrets that threaten to come crashing down onto his shoulders. Instead, something knocks the back of his head.

He stands up a little straighter and looks around over his shoulders. At some point he’d been dragged back into the throng of people, and he frowns a little. And then he spots a figure towards the back of an emptier area, and it’s the shock of likeness to _her_ in that face that claps such deafening thunder over their heads. By the time he’s stopped his fingers spitting electricity the Valkyrie is back by his side, sword drawn, and Bruce too.

“Always so dramatic, brother,” says Loki, arms crossed defiantly. “I can hear your gears grinding from here.” She’s standing a little awkwardly in breeches and a green cotton tunic, cinched at the waist, and easily blending in with the surrounding Asgardian populace. Her hair is braided with a golden thread, and he knows that the large (potentially hostile) audience is making her nervous by the finger she taps against her bicep. Thor doesn’t much care, because this is _Loki_ , and he gapes and takes it all in—everything he didn’t know if he’d ever see again. Even Valkyrie is relaxed and smiling gently, and Bruce has lost that green tinge on his skin.

Loki huffs a little irritably and another visage folds over the old, and suddenly the Loki that stood with him as they faced down Thanos is looking right back, blood and dirt and tears and all. Thor starts towards him, but falters as he reaches out, and curls his fingers back into him palms. Loki’s disgruntled throat clearing snaps him out of his odd daze and he finally scoops his brother up into a hug that’s probably crushing a few bones. Somewhere, distantly, he thinks somebody starts up the cheering, but at the moment it’s taking all he has not to weep for his brother’s pain. He can feel his warmth through the stiffness of his armour and the buckles dig into his exposed arms but Thor doesn’t care. He breathes deeply and presses his face into his brother’s shoulder and stops trying to think.

“I do have a reputation to uphold, you know,” Loki grumbles, but the arms that snake around his back grip him just as fiercely. Thor pulls back and looks at him, studies his face, hands moving from shoulders to face to neck and back again. He’s grinning so much his cheeks have started to ache. Loki is trying to give him that infamous eyebrow, but is he himself struggling not to smile too widely, so it’s okay. Everything may just be all right. Thor’s tempted to lift him up to perch on his shoulder just to hear his indignant yelp and his griping. Instead he steps back to give him space. Valkyrie and Bruce both send acknowledging nods or smiles, and yes it’s awkward but it’s getting there, and they all shake on it. Tony and Steve approach them from the gathered band of currently sidelined superheroes, both offering their own hands to shake and (very generous, considering) smiles.

 

“Welcome to Earth.”

 

 


End file.
